Flock Together
A birdwatching collective founded by and for people of colour that’s as much about mental health, creativity, ecology and community as ornithology.
What is it: A birdwatching collective for people of colour started in London by Ollie Olanipekun and Nadeem Perera (who met each other on Instagram over their shared love of birdwatching). From its first walk on Walthamstow Wetlands last year, Flock Together now has chapters worldwide, including in Toronto, New York, Milan and Paris.
Why you’ll love it: Join one of the monthly birdwatching walks — don’t worry, no experience is needed and beginners, as well as experienced birdwatchers, are very much welcome. So that no one is left out, Flock Together has developed brand partnerships, with binoculars and equipment donated. Although the walks are built around how to spot birds and what they are when you do — is that a jay, a wood pigeon, a robin? — they also build a supportive community, that understands the circumstances that might have brought you here.
What you need to know: New initiative Flock Together Academy makes sure kids get into nature, start to see the birds around them, and begin to understand ecological issues. Nature has been shown to have huge benefits to our kids — a year of being glued to Zoom classrooms and disconnected from the outdoors has been a desperately sad indicator of this. These classes in green spaces make nature visible, accessible, and vital again to young minds ready to learn outside the classroom what’s really important.
How to bring this into your life: Interested in the mission of Flock Together? Reach out to them to open a chapter wherever you are.
Why it matters: Think birdwatching and what’s the image that comes to mind? Maybe the media painted picture of a middle-aged khaki-wearing white man sat with their triangle sandwiches in a bird hide deep in the English countryside. That’s the history and that’s the misrepresentation problem, right there. Flock Together began during both lockdown – when the connection between nature and mental health became clearer — and the Black Lives Matter movement when who had access and who didn’t to this form of support also became more apparent. Similarly, birdwatching hasn’t been equitable, or diverse. This became acutely known when a white dog walker called the police on a black birdwatcher Chris Cooper in Central Park. Also, birdwatching hasn’t exactly been cool, but Flock Together is shifting that too. And those mental health benefits, Olanipekun and Perera are building this into their mission developing therapeutic sessions for participants.
In their own words: “Nature is a universal resource. For too long black, brown and POC have felt unwelcome and marginalised in spaces that should be for everyone. Together we are reclaiming green spaces and rebuilding our relationship with nature — one walk at a time.”
Something to do: We’re very new to noticing the birds around us. During the lockdown, we learned to identify the birds in our garden for the first time. And though we learned their rhythms, their colours and their songs, we also learned that we play a role in looking after them. Read this post from Flock Together, which shows us all how to take care of our feathered friends: by feeding them, cultivating wildflowers, putting out water, and looking after the insects — the birds need them too.
Lead photo credit: Zaineb Abelque
The Centre de Danse du Marais
When you step off Rue du Temple, under the arches, and down the cobbled path to the central courtyard, known as “la coeur”, the heart of the Centre, you can feel the significance of this sacred space.
Steal away from the hustle and bustle of Paris to one of the city’s finest gems, a refuge that is only steps from the popular Centre Pompidou in the 4th arrondissement: The Centre de Danse du Marais, a mecca for dance.
Many types of classes and workshops are offered daily to people of all ages and abilities, including yoga, music, and other performing arts, but dance is the focus, and classes are available to fit any skill level, from beginner to professional.
When you step off Rue du Temple, under the arches, and down the cobbled path to the central courtyard, known as “la coeur”, the heart of the Centre, you can feel the significance of this sacred space. The beautiful old classic stone structure houses many uniquely shaped studios, each with its own personality and named for famous composers, like Debussy, Chopin, and Beethoven.
Magic is created every day here: Magic in the way that the light flows through the window into the room; magic in the way the floor creaks when embodied dancers move across it; magic in the way the drums make the sacred walls vibrate; magic in the way the vibration overflows, spilling into the courtyard, filling “the heart” with rhythms of the soul, rhythms that can be understood in all languages.
Studies have proven that dance is one of the best forms of exercise for health, wellbeing and longevity. It improves memory, balance, depression, anxiety, weight loss, sleep, sex, youthfulness, and overall happiness. But you don’t need studies to encourage you to dance. We’re betting that the smile on your face while you’re dancing will be evidence enough.
So do yourself a favor: Wherever you are in the world, find a way to dance! Try a few different styles and teachers. See what you like. Be open. Be vulnerable. Go for it.
But if you find yourself in Paris, you simply MUST visit the Centre de Danse du Marais. Yes, there’s the Eiffel Towel and the Louvre, but there’s this too. And where your body, your life, your sense of self is concerned, you will not regret an afternoon spent dancing here.
To find out more: website www.centrededansedumarais.fr / Instagram @centredansemarais / Facebook @centre.de.danse.du.marais